Connecticut Becomes 17th Medical Marijuana State

Governor Dannel Malloy (D) Friday signed into law the medical marijuana bill, House Bill 5389, passed last month by the legislature, making Connecticut the 17th state to legalize the medicinal use of the herb, along with the District of Columbia. Now, licensed physicians will be able to prescribe it to adults suffering from specified diseases or medical conditions.

"For years, we’ve heard from so many patients with chronic diseases who undergo treatments like chemotherapy or radiation and are denied the palliative benefits that medical marijuana would provide," Malloy said in a signing statement. "With careful regulation and safeguards, this law will allow a doctor and a patient to decide what is in that patient’s best interest."

Under the new law, patients must receive a written recommendation from a physician and register with the Department of Consumer Protection. Patients and their primary caregivers can possess up to a one-month supply, although how much that is has yet to be determined. It will be decided by a board of eight physicians.

Patients will be able to obtain their medicine at licensed dispensaries. Only certified pharmacists may apply to run the dispensaries. They will be supplied by at least three, but no more than 10, licensed medical marijuana growers, each of which will pay a fee of $25,000.